A Tale of Two Cities: New York and Cork
- Kaitlyn McNulty
- Dec 6, 2022
- 4 min read
Updated: Apr 11, 2023
Recently, I attended a lecture organized by the Department of Italian and the School of English that was entitled “Joyce’s Ulysses: A Tale of Two Cities, Dublin and Trieste”. The lecture was presented by John McCourt, who is a professor of English at the University of Macerata. He gave a detailed account of the ways in which the city of Trieste played an integral role in Joyce’s development of Ulysses. He started with a small anecdote about James and Nora’s arrival in this strange new land. Upon arriving in Trieste, Nora waited at the train station for hours—without knowing a lick of Italian—while James went to look for accommodation. However, he quickly found himself caught up in trouble. He was arrested, based on an untrue assumption, and spent a few hours in jail before they eventually released him. Even with this rocky start, Nora and James established a life for themselves in Italy, and James drew inspiration from the people of Trieste and the experiences he had there.
Attached below is a link to an article by Peter Geoghegan. He talks about Joyce's connection to Trieste and breaks down some of the top places to visit. I'll be adding my breakdown of the top places to visit on Long Island down below. Enjoy :)
This juxtaposition between Joyce’s life in Italy and Ireland—this tale of two cities—made me think about how it may be interesting to document both the intricate and blatant differences between New York and Cork. Although this topic might seem quite personal, and possibly not the most conducive way of working towards a thesis topic, I’d argue that tracking the nuances between these two places may help clarify where I draw inspiration from, where my passions lie, and how they may differ in each respective city. What have I been inspired by after spending the last few months in Cork? What do I desperately miss from New York? Is the separation from the place I’ve called home for twenty three-years causing a part of myself to dwindle? Or is the distance provoking growth in unexpected ways?
My List of Long Island "Must See" Locations
Start off in the Big Apple, you'll probably be flying into JFK anyway, so why not take a spin around. Head to Central Park, Time Square, and catch a Broadway show if you have time.
As you leave the city, you'll be making your way into Queens. Though technically attached to Long Island, they do not claim us and thus any attractions that may reside in Queens will not be featured on this list.
As you inch your way into Nassau, there are a few stops I'd recommend. Firstly, the Botanical Gardens located in Old Westbury. The beautiful grounds look best in the spring and summer, but the fall would be lovely too. On the grounds is an old historical mansion, formerly home to the Phipps family—I believe—and there should be tours given around the house as well.
After a day spent in the gardens, head to Umberto's in Floral Park. Probably the best slice of pizza you'll eat. Ever.
As you drive further east on the island, you'll be leaving Nassau and heading into Suffolk county. Here, I'd suggest you grab a bagel with some cream cheese to hold you over for the rest of your travels. You can pick up a decent bagel from almost any of the bagel shops around, and it'll prove to be mighty competition when you try to compare it to the slice of pizza from the night before.
If you want to visit a cute seaside town that sits right at the midway point, I'd suggest you pop into Port Jefferson. I may be biased, as this is fairly close to where I grew up, but it's a nice place to stroll around with many cute shops to stop into.
After a bit more driving, you'll reach the point of the island where the two "forks" divide—the North Fork and the South Fork. Both are in possession of their own claims to fame, so I'll give tips for each.
North Fork: There are two stops you must make. NoFo donuts located in Mattituck, and The Times vintage clothing store in Greenport. Hard to beat combing through racks of dresses straight out of the 70s after you just had the most lovely Apple Cinnamon donut.
Finally, I bring you the South Fork. Home of the Hamptons and some of the loveliest beaches you'll encounter. There's Cooper's Beach and Egypt Beach, in Southampton and East Hampton respectively. First, though, you'll need some reading material for the beach, and I'll direct you towards Sag Harbor Books or BookHampton. You'll also want to pop into Damark's Deli for the best Acai Bowl that you'll likely consume, and later on in the evening finish up your day with some dinner at any of the various restaurants scattered around town. A lot will feature a hefty price tag, but you may see Paul McCartney running along the beach as you're eating ravioli. (This is not from personal experience, though I wish it was.)
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